Ridley Scott's explanation of this sequence:
“He’s just sitting there quietly, enjoying life,” Scott says of Lecter, who’s been on the loose for ten years and is now hiding out in Florence, “until he sees his old adversary having problems.” These pages show Lecter writing Clarice a consoling, clue-laden letter (“which fundamentally says, ‘Chin up, old girl,’ ” Scott explains) from his opulent home in the Renaissance city. Several frames later, it will be delivered to Starling in the bowels of the FBI building. (When she opens the package, Mathieson says, Scott wanted her to be bathed in the golden glow of Florence.) The scene establishes the emotional connection between the two, through lighting and Lecter’s voice-over as well as through structural technique. “You’re looking for ins and outs, cuts and dissolves,” says Mathieson, who notes that this kind of transition can be challenging. “It was rather clever. It really shows some skill for telling stories purely through imagery.”
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